Arctic Monkeys - I Wanna Be Yours

Teachers package

'Crying Lightning'

Eline-Angela-Nathalie

Teachers package

'Crying Lightning'

Eline-Angela-Nathalie

Table of contents

Teachers package4

Background information5

Goal5

Facts – song Crying Lightning – Arctic Monkeys 5

Teacher necessities6

Lesson plan7

Introduction7

Pre-reading exercises7

While reading exercises7

Post-reading exercises8

Homework8

Answer key9

Students worksheets11

Introduction13

Pre-reading exercise13

Exercise 113

While reading exercises

Exercise 214
Exercise 416

Post-reading exercises

Exercise 315
Exercise 516
Exercise 617
Exercise 717
Exercise 817
Exercise 918
Exercise 1019
Exercise 1120
Exercise 1220
Exercise 1320

Homework assignments

Exercise 121
Exercise 221
Exercise 322

Teacher’s package

Background information

In this teacher package you’ll find extra information and teacher’s materials regarding the poetry lesson “Crying Lightning”.

This lesson is suitable for year 2 VMBO-TL and onwards.

We‘ve chosen a song to introduce poetry into classroom. Our students aren’t used to poetry in the classroom. Using songs makes it light and fun. We think it’s close to the students’ perceptions.

Goal

At the end of the lesson students have

cooperated and discussed with fellow students
worked on their vocabulary
learned to dig deeper into the meaning of words and sayings
learned that words have power
explained their opinion in their own words
used their imagination and creativity through drawing and making a poster
had fun

Facts – song Crying Lightning – Arctic Monkeys:

The Arctic Monkeys were formed in 2002 in Sheffield, UK. There typical sound is mostly formed by their lead singer and frontman Alex Turner. His often rapidly delivered lyrics, sung in a distinctive strong Sheffield accent made their music famous in their early years. The punk poet John Cooper Clarke has been a great inspiration for their music. And their frontman is often praised as one of the greatest lyricist and their lyrics are by some even titled as poetry.

This song is from their album 'Humbug' released in 2009.

The song is about falling for a bad girl.
At first it's good fun being with her: She's kind of crazy, and he likes her hard-to-get games (that's crying lightning). The line, "her past-times consisted of the strange, the twisted and deranged," means she likes messing with this guy's mind. She's all over him one day, but fighting him the next. Toying with his feelings is fun for her. In the song's context, "past times" means hobbies, or things to do for fun— not a past experience.
He knows the girl is bad news, but he goes with it ("I love that little game you call crying lightning"). I think he tried to avoid getting involved with her ("the next time that I caught my own reflection it was on its way to meet you, thinking of excuses to postpone") because he knew she played games, but he was too attracted to her...

However, as he spends time with her, he realizes her games aren't fun anymore. Now he sees her attitude as mean and conceited with no regards for his bruised feelings ("..stood and puffed your chest out like you never lost a war..") He doesn't want to be a broken-hearted wimp about realizing she's really a bitch, so he doesn't say anything and holds in his emotions ("..I try so not to suffer the indignity of a reaction.."), but he does conclude that being her boy toy and emotional punching bag is not what he wants to be. She's been a hard pill to swallow, but even if it was fun in the

beginning (she was "uninviting, but not half as impossible as everyone assumes"), he doesn't want to play crying lightning anymore.
In the end, he's changed his mind: "I hate that little game you had called crying lightning."

(Source - songmeanings.com

Teacher’s necessities:

Worksheets for all students (please check page numbers when printing for students)

Smartboard

Whiteboard

Whiteboard markers

PowerPoint with title of the song and hyperlink

Markers for students

Lesson plan:

Introduction:

Showing a slide on the smartboard with title of the song and a hyperlink to the song.

Hand out the worksheets and if necessary provide students with markers.

Depending on the level of the students this lesson could bemore teacher structured or student structured.

The idea is that students work individually and discuss their outcome with fellow students.It’s up to the teacher to decide what to do.

Pre-reading exercises:

1.ask the students to go to page 2 and write down what they think the song is about.

After a few minutes there’ll be a brief discussion in small groups.

or teacher invites students to write their thoughts on the whiteboard. This will not take more than 5 minutes.

2.Start the video. Students will listen and read along with the text.

While reading exercises

3.After listening students will read the text again, they’ll mark difficult words and cooperate with fellow students to find out the meaning of the words.

5.While reading (or listening to) the beginning of the song again, students have to fill in the gaps. They have to use the words from exercise 4.

Post-reading exercises

4.In this exercise students combine pictures with words from the song to expand their vocabulary.

6-8In these 3 exercises students have to dig deeper into the meaning of the text and answer questions.

9.Students have to explain in their own words why they think the images matches the song or not.

10-12In these 3 exercises students have to dig deeper into the meaning of the text and answer questions.

13.Students will use their own imagination and creativity and make a drawing.

Homework:

1-3Students have to check the lyrics of their favourite songs and try to find the most important words of the lyrics.

They’ll use their creativity to make their own poster.

The teacher will let the students when they have to finish the homework and bring to class.

Answer key

1. students could have different answers

2. no question just reading and listening

3. no question

Lightning /
Gob-stopper /
Ice-cream

Strawberry lace /
Throne /
Factory

Outside the cafe by the cracker factory______

You were practicing a magic trick

And my thoughts got rude, as you talked and chewed

On the last of your pick and mix

Said you’re mistaken if you’re thinking that I haven't been called cold before

As you bit into your strawberry lace

And then offered your attention in the form of a gobstopper

Is all you have left and it was going to waste

Your past-times, consisted of the strange

And twisted and deranged

And I love that little game you had called

Crying lightning

And how you like to aggravate the ice-cream man on rainy afternoons

He knows the girl is bad news, but he goes with it ("I love that little game you call crying lightning"). I think he tried to avoid getting involved with her ("the next time that I caught my own reflection it was on its way to meet you, thinking of excuses to postpone") because he knew she played games, but he was too attracted to her...
However, as he spends time with her, he realizes her games aren't fun anymore. Now he sees her attitude as mean and conceited with no regards for his bruised feelings ("..stood and puffed your chest out like you never lost a war..") He doesn't want to be a broken-hearted wimp about realizing she's really a bitch, so he doesn't say anything and holds in his emotions ("..I try so not to suffer the indignity of a reaction.."), but he does conclude that being her boy toy and emotional punching bag is not what he wants to be. She's been a hard pill to swallow, but even if it was fun in the

Students could have different answers.

In the song it’s never mentioned but we think that the girl is just a friend, not specially his girlfriend.

8. students could have different answers

9. students could have different answers

10.

Both songs are about heart breaking love. In Crying lightning the singer is the one who loves the girl. The girl is the bad lover. In Jar of hearts the singer is the one who is loved by the boy. The boy is the bad lover.

Students could have different answers.

11. Possible answer: having many unhappy relationships, a lot of break-ups.

Students could have different answers.

12.Meaning: You might end up hurting yourself as well.

13. students own individual drawings

The homework assignments are student’ individual work. There’s no wrong answer.

Student worksheets

Poetry worksheet

'Crying Lightning'

Eline-Angela-Nathalie

Dear students,

You're going to listen to a song performed by the English band 'Arctic Monkeys'.

They were formed in 2002 in Sheffield, UK. There typical sound is mostly formed by their lead singer and frontman Alex Turner. His often rapidly delivered lyrics, sung in a distinctive strong Sheffield accent made their music famous in their early years. The punk poet John Cooper Clarke has been a great inspiration for their music. And their frontman is often praised as one of the greatest lyricist and their lyrics are by some even titled as poetry.

This song is from their album 'Humbug' released in 2009.

Look at the title on the cover page of this worksheet or on

the board.

1.What do you think the song is about?

Write down in maximum of 4 lines.

2.Read along with the song

Crying Lightning-Arctic Monkeys

Outside the cafe by the cracker factory
You were practicing a magic trick
And my thoughts got rude, as you talked and chewed
On the last of your pick and mix

Said “you’re mistaken if you’re thinking that I haven't been called ‘cold’ before”
As you bit into your strawberry lace
And then offered me your attention in the form of a gobstopper
Is all you have left and it was going to waste

Your past-times, consisted of the strange
And twisted and deranged
And I love that little game you had called
Crying lightning
And how you like to aggravate the ice-cream man on rainy afternoons

The next time that I caught my own reflection
It was on its way to meet you
Thinking of excuses to postpone
You never looked like yourself from the side
But your profile did not hide
The fact you knew I was approaching your throne

With folded arms you occupy the bench like toothache
Stood and puffed your chest out like you never lost a war
And though I try so not to suffer the indignity of reaction
There was no cracks to grasp or gaps to claw

And your past-times, consisted of the strange
And twisted and deranged
And I hate that little game you had called
Crying lightning
And how you like to aggravate the icky man on rainy afternoons

Uninviting
But not half as impossible as everyone assumes
You are crying lightning

Your past-times, consisted of the strange
And twisted and deranged
And I hate that little game you had called
Crying lightning

Songwriters: Alex Turner

3.Read the text again and mark all the difficult words.

Check the difficult words with your neighbour. Does he/she has scribbled the same words or different ones?

Try to help each other and try to find the meaning of the words. Write down the words and meanings you found together.

4Match the pictures with the words.

Write the correct word under the pictures.

Gob-stopper / Ice-cream / Lightning / Strawberry lace / Throne / Factory

5.Listen tothe beginning of the song and complete the text with 4 words from exercise 4.

In the song it’s just like the singer is talking to someone or talking about someone. Underneath you’ll find another passage from the song.

Your past-times, consisted of the strange
And twisted and deranged
And I love that little game you had called
Crying lightning
And how you like to aggravate the ice-cream man on rainy afternoons

And your past-times, consisted of the strange
And twisted and deranged
And I hate that little game you had called
Crying lightning

6.Why would he at first say he loves that little game and

later on that he hates that little game?

7.What kind of relationship do you think, the two have?

8.In exercise 1 you explained what you thought the song is about. Did you change your mind? What do you think now?

The images above are photos, posters made for the song ‘Crying lightning’.

9. Do you think these images match the song?

Explain in your own words.

Have you ever heard of the word ballad or ballads?

A ballad is a type of poetry or verse which was basically used in dance songs in the ancient France. Ballad is the oldest form of English poetry. However this form of poetry represents one of the earlier stages in the evolution of poetic art. A ballad tells a story. Ballads are often quite dramatic.

Nowadays ballads have a slightly different meaning. Ballad took on the meaning of a slow form of popular love song and is now often used for any love song, particularly the sentimental ballad of pop or rock.

Below, you can see an example of a modern ballad.

Christina perri – ‘Jar of Hearts’

I know I can't take one more step towards you

'Cause all that's waiting is regret

Don't you know I'm not your ghost anymore?

You lost the love I loved the most

I learned to live, half alive

And now you want me one more time

Who do you think you are?

Runnin' 'round leaving scars

Collecting your jar of hearts

And tearing love apart

You're gonna catch a cold

From the ice inside your soul

So don't come back for me

Who do you think you are?

The song from the Artic Monkeys and Christina Perri have a similar topic, but are also very different.

10. What do they have in common? And how are they different?

Title of the song is ‘Jar of hearts’, the Dutch translation is: harten in een pot. Look at the picture above. Jar of hearts has a deeper meaner than just (‘harten in een pot’)

11.What do you think it means?

‘You’re gonna catch a cold from the ice inside your soul’.

12.What is the translation of this sentence? And what does it mean?

13.And how would you draw this?

Homework assignments:

1.Pick out 1 song that you really like. Print out the lyrics. You will need this for your next assignment in class.

2.Write down some words from your song lyrics that you think are important for the song. Example: strange, twisted, deranged.

3.Make your own poster for the song that you choose, just

like the examples that you have already seen.

Part of the poem 'Drive She Said' by John Cooper Clarke

I hit the deck like a ton of lard
when the back of my neck hit something hard
A yard of lead or a judo chop
drive she said, I’ll tell you when to stop

Up my sleeve she stuck me with a spike
said you can leave whenever I like

Give me bread
Take me round the shops
drive she said, I’ll tell you when to stop

There was eloquence
style and poise
and pure malevolence
in her voice
Move it man
chop-chop
Drive she said
I’ll tell you when to stop

THE END